Killing a Timber Giant
Mon Feb 02 2026
In this episode of the Rokcast, Jaden Bales sits down with Aquila Brown, a BC hunter who flat-out earned a monster timber giant mule deer the hard way. This wasn’t some glass-a-basin-and-pick-a-buck hunt. This was thick, steep, nasty timber on an over-the-counter tag, with almost no visibility and plenty of pressure. Aquila spent close to 20 days scouting and hunting one specific buck and made the decision early that he was either killing that deer or eating the tag.
We dig into how he hunted mule deer where glassing barely works. Trail cameras became his eyes in the woods, snow tracks kept him in the game, and still-hunting was the only real way to make something happen. Aquila breaks down how slow is actually “slow enough,” how he handled missing the buck by hours or a couple hundred yards, and why believing the deer was still there mattered more than anything. If you hunt dark timber, pressured OTC units, or country that just feels hopeless most days, this episode will hit home.
It all comes together on the very last day of the season with a fast, offhand shot through a tiny opening in the trees. We talk about passing good bucks late in the season, trusting the process, and what it feels like when everything finally clicks after weeks of grinding. This is a real look at killing a giant mule deer on purpose, not by luck, and why sometimes the hardest hunts are the ones that stay with you forever. Listen in to learn more about hunting a Timber Giant!
You can reach out to Aquila on Rokslide at Kootenaybackwoods at https://rokslide.com/forums/members/kootenaybackwoods.78840/
or discuss this episode here
https://rokslide.com/forums/forums/rokcast.129/
Rokcast is powered by onX Hunt. For 20% off, use Promo Code “Rokcast” at onX Hunt here https://www.onxmaps.com/hunt/app
You can find Robby’s books, Hunting Big Mule Deer and The Stories on Amazon here
or signed copies from the Rokslide store here
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In this episode of the Rokcast, Jaden Bales sits down with Aquila Brown, a BC hunter who flat-out earned a monster timber giant mule deer the hard way. This wasn’t some glass-a-basin-and-pick-a-buck hunt. This was thick, steep, nasty timber on an over-the-counter tag, with almost no visibility and plenty of pressure. Aquila spent close to 20 days scouting and hunting one specific buck and made the decision early that he was either killing that deer or eating the tag. We dig into how he hunted mule deer where glassing barely works. Trail cameras became his eyes in the woods, snow tracks kept him in the game, and still-hunting was the only real way to make something happen. Aquila breaks down how slow is actually “slow enough,” how he handled missing the buck by hours or a couple hundred yards, and why believing the deer was still there mattered more than anything. If you hunt dark timber, pressured OTC units, or country that just feels hopeless most days, this episode will hit home. It all comes together on the very last day of the season with a fast, offhand shot through a tiny opening in the trees. We talk about passing good bucks late in the season, trusting the process, and what it feels like when everything finally clicks after weeks of grinding. This is a real look at killing a giant mule deer on purpose, not by luck, and why sometimes the hardest hunts are the ones that stay with you forever. Listen in to learn more about hunting a Timber Giant! You can reach out to Aquila on Rokslide at Kootenaybackwoods at https://rokslide.com/forums/members/kootenaybackwoods.78840/ or discuss this episode here https://rokslide.com/forums/forums/rokcast.129/ Rokcast is powered by onX Hunt. For 20% off, use Promo Code “Rokcast” at onX Hunt here https://www.onxmaps.com/hunt/app You can find Robby’s books, Hunting Big Mule Deer and The Stories on Amazon here or signed copies from the Rokslide store here